Three things I learned about The Order: 1886

When Sony introduced The Order: 1886 last year, it looked good but didn’t impress me. It wasn’t until E3 2014 that a clearer picture of the game emerged. It was atmospheric and creepy, showing some of the plot and backstory. In the extended demo I saw, the Ready at Dawn team offered more insight into the title’s development.

Here’s what I learned:Fighting Lycanthropes is as intense as it looks.

1. THERE’S A RIDICULOUS AMOUNT OF DETAIL If there’s one common theme to the demo and a point that the developers wanted to emphasize, it was that the team took great pains in creating a convincing Victorian era world. Ready at Dawn used full performance body capture so that they could get every scene right. That way Galahad is shown speaking into the communicator attached to his shoulder as he searches a hospital.

The developers examined facilities of that era and created art assets like detailed anatomical statues of bodies and skeletons that are fully rendered and move if players brush by them. Also if players pay attention to the environment, they can pick up hints about what may come up next. Walking through the hospital, Galahad runs into a gramophone discussing “half-breeds” in the lower depths of the building. Looking through slats of patient rooms, players see deranged people in the sanitorium. If they pay attention, they’ll hear more hints about what’s ahead.

It’s a subtle but smart way to convey atmosphere and plot.

Galahad’s guns have multiple ways to fire, which should help taking down lycanthropes.

2. COMBAT AND CONSEQUENCES ARE FULL OF POSSIBILITIES What I saw over and over again in the demo is all the way Galahad can die. It almost reminded me of the many deaths of Lara Croft in the Tomb Raider reboot. If he doesn’t shoot the werewolf in time, it’ll devour him. If he doesn’t run away fast enough, there’s another gruesome demise. But players shouldn’t worry, the team said it didn’t want the game to be too punishing and that checkpoints are usually placed before moments of potential slaughter.

Ready at Dawn explained that they always wanted the character to do something in this single-player game. When he’s injured, Galahad can take a potion called Black Water to quickly regain health. During a firefight, his guns such as the Essex M2 “Falchion” has two firing modes: one shoots bullets and the other triggers a focused concussion blast.

There are plenty of ways to die if players lack dexterity on the controller.

3. The team is still testing out ideas: The team said it wanted to elevate storytelling. Over the course of the demo, they showed several ways to do this. The developers try to create a believable alternate history world, where players will run into historical figures (such as Nikola Tesla) but they’ll have a twist to them. The fact that Kirk Ellis, the writer who worked on the HBO drama John Adams, is working on the story should help.

In addition, they looked to Europe for most of the acting talent. As The Last of Us showed last year, the people playing the roles are just as important as the lines they’re saying. I couldn’t get a handle on the chemistry between Galahad and the other members of his team, but they did get a sense of suspense right.

Lastly, Ready at Dawn is still working out some storytelling ideas. One of them is to try to use the DualShock 4’s built-in speaker as an outlet for the communicator, a member of the team said. It seemed like a good idea and the limited sound quality on the controller would work with that era’s tech. It could be another way to immerse players in the world of The Order: 1886 when it’s released Feb. 20, 2015, on the PlayStation 4.